Pair Escape Thief After Being Carjacked in St. James

Two Winnipeggers are OK after they were carjacked and forced to drive the thief to a nearby bank on Monday.

Winnipeg police said the pair, a 59-year-old man and an 82-year-old woman, were at a car wash on Madison Street at about 7:30 p.m. when a man wearing a disguise approached them at gunpoint. The man got into the Hyundai Tucson they were driving, and demanded the pair take him to a bank machine.

The male victim drove everyone to a bank near Ellice Avenue and Empress Street where he and the carjacker got out of the SUV. The victim then yelled to nearby people to call police, prompting the carjacker to hit him, and get back into the SUV and drive off. The 82-year-old woman managed to get out of the car before he drove away. The male victim was not seriously hurt.

Police found the SUV around 9 p.m. at the Cindy Klassen Recreation Centre, abandoned.

Police are looking for a man, 6’1″-6’4″ tall, with a thin build. He was wearing dark-coloured clothing and a shirt of sweater concealing his face. The suspect was also carrying a backpack, said police.